Rear fenders welded on?

[casper50]

Since I bought my coupe 2 years ago I always intended to weld the rear fenders onto the body.  I know it inhibits access, I am willing to live with this.  To me smoothing improves the overall lines on the rear of the car greatly.  It's time to start on the rear of the coupe.  I've searched here and the internet for threads about this but info is thin.  In the few threads that I found about 2/3rds of the posts say not to do this because of future cracks.  The few that I could track down that say it would crack, all had used plastic filler to smooth.  From the start I wanted to use lead instead of plastic filler.    Will lead mitigate the tendency to crack?  I do not feel like doing the paint/body work twice.  All opinions welcome but factual experience greatly appreciated.

[greg g]

I guess if you feel you will never need to service the fender in case of a collision, dent, scratch, permanently attaching it and filling it is aesthetically pleasing.  But if you even need to service the fenders, that procedure would become more problematic with them welded in place. When I did my paint (black)  I used black welting, so the seam is virtually invisible from 6 feet or so.  I have seen welting in several colors on street rod sites, Like Juliano's.

Edited January 31, 2016 by greg g

[40plyrod]

I welded mine on but also bolted them down with seam sealer between the joints first. My opinion is welding them the entire length of the join and preparing the surface and using the filler correctly then it should be no problem. Others having problems with cracking may be due to too much filler or the wrong type or not welding on fully.On mine after welding the seam and cleaning the surface I coated the area with epoxy primer and put on a skim coat of fiberglass stranded filler, this is semi-waterproof which will stop any moisture from wicking up from the bottom side and causing the filler to lift. Then I used regular filler on top to finish smoothing. Keep in mind these are very thin coats. Also keep in mind that I haven't put the car into any regular service yet but it has been on a few years and has been driven up and down our road many times and our road is uneven so lots of chances for flexing. I also welded the front fenders to the hood sides and the front grill, so if it goes bad it's going to happen everywhere. Lastly this is only my opinion.     

[chop]

I've welded fenders on a few cars. On my '52 I took the fenders off and removed the rubber gasket then bolted them back on and got them adjusted. I put a spot weld every few inches, ground them down then covered them seam with All Metal, it's like body filler but it doesn't absorb moisture like regular filler does so you don't have to worry about rust forming later. Then I just used regular filler over the top of that for the body work. I did the same on my '54 Chevy and never had a problem with cracking.

Edited January 31, 2016 by chop

[casper50]

Thanks guys that's the info needed to make a final decision.

[busycoupe]

When I bought my car in 2007 the rear fenders were already welded/filled in. The previous owner told me he had body work done in the early 90's and I assume that the fenders were done then. I had the car painted in 2008, but did not notice any cracks prior to that. Still no cracks to date. I drive the car about 1000 mi./yr.

[casper50]

Thanks everyone.  I believe I'll go ahead and weld them on.  Means lots more work but IMO much better looking in the long run.

[casper50]

busycoupe I sent you a PM.

[Plymouthy Adams]

does lend a wide look....

Edited February 2, 2016 by Plymouthy Adams

[casper50]

It does indeed.  But I noticed in busycoupe's photo above that with the trim on it tends to take away from the clean curvy lines.  Since I've seen his photo I'm back on the fence.

[Plymouthy Adams]

so maybe you are searching for a bit of the shaved completely look.......

Edited February 2, 2016 by Plymouthy Adams

[casper50]

not really.  I like the trim that came on it.  I never thought about how it would break up the smooth lines of the welded fenders until I saw the above photo.

[Plymouthy Adams]

the look is different...this car I bought shaved and was not going to go with this in the beginning but I only found one set of trim since I bought this car and Fed-Ex done a gorilla stomp on it completely..so have resigned myself to the shaved look and pretty much have had to rework the whole car...technically it is just in need of paint at this minute...but with all the rework...and the last major find in initial build component layout was the straw that broke the camels back...I have corrected that but my heart is just not in the project at the minute...in time I will get back to it..it eats nothing while sitting in the shop

 

hard to do some changes and still balance the trim...it is wise to look a bout and get that image in your mind....

[1952B3b23]

Casper, i think if I was going to weld the fenders on I'd ditch the side trim for a nice clean look. If you know someone that is good at photoshop they could render you several pics of your car in different styles. Then you'd have an easier time settling on what you like best and making a plan. Take a look over on The Custom Car Chronicle website or even e-mail Rik Hoving the creator. He's very good at photoshop and has a really good eye for early customs.

-Chris

[casper50]

thanks Chris but I know that I like the welded look without all the trim to interrupt the lines.  But, I like the trim on the car better than the shaved look.  I've pretty much resigned myself that I'm not going to weld them on.  Until Busycoupe posted that photo I was dead set on welding them on.  The look that I like is totally ruined by the trim and I like the trim more.  Oh well.

[Frank Elder]

not really.  I like the trim that came on it.  I never thought about how it would break up the smooth lines of the welded fenders until I saw the above photo.

Maybe you could have both with a stripe instead of trim?